Monthly Archives: March 2012

Greetings from Laurel Canyon!

Believe it or not, I’m still feeling fairly under the weather almost a week after coming down with the flu. Last week, I somehow “mailed in” the Idelic Hour from bed. Although I’m somewhat better, this week in many ways has been just as rough.

But we all know what it’s like to be under the weather and still have to go on stage (so to speak). Those of us neck deep in rock ‘n roll know the “the show must go on!”

As a teen, I remember sneaking backstage (or I should say upstairs) at Max Kansas City. To revive himself, Johnny Thunders had filled the sink up with water and dunked his head in before taking the stage. It’s a technique I later used for my own band and now for this week’s Idelic Hour.

Still sick and shaking it off is what this week’s Idelic Hour is about. The set is a playlist of cool records, some new, most old—a bunch of cuts about being sick and lyrics that attracted me even when I had a headache.

This is also the season for new releases. Check the mix for a couple: Lower Dens, Cloud Nothings, Violens, The Neighbourhood, and Lost In The Trees.

Clear heads and sunny skies on the horizon!

The Idelic Hit of the Week:
Lost In The Trees – Neither Here Nor There

“We are Dance for the Dying and this is our love letter to vinyl.”

Brad, Bass + Synth | “I’m still psyched when I see a new record store open up. I like going through bins at the Goodwill or Salvation Army – where I can find out of print records by never heard of artists. I like that record store owners can curate the shop with all the stuff they want people to hear. And I love listening to music that is mixed and mastered for vinyl.

But beyond that I love the way vinyl showcases a complete album. It can give the artist parameters to put serious thought into the mood and flow of the record. There can be a clear vibe to each side, and in turn an arc that each side can take. With records, there’s no worry that the meta-data might mess up and re-order everything. No worry that the song will be purchased out of its context.

I’m not hating on mp3s, but I like the way a record interacts with you. It tells you by scratching and skipping that its time to be flipped. Except in the case of Lou Reed’s “Metal Machine Music,” where it just goes on forever in a locked noisy groove.”

Read More »

TVD recently gave away a copy of Nevermind, Nirvana’s breakthrough album, as part of our 10 Weeks of Record Store Day Vinyl Giveaways. This time around, we’re giving away another album featuring the music of the Seattle grunge band, a copy of Incesticide, the compilation album released by the band in 1992.

The album, a collection of band rarities, features live performances, demo recordings, and previously unreleased material. Among the songs on Incesticide are “Hairspray Queen,” “Aneurysm,” and a newer version of “Been a Son.” Also on the album are covers of Devo and The Vaselines, as well as one of my favorite Nirvana songs, “Sliver,” which was originally released as a non-album single in 1990.

Hitting shelves less than two years after the aforementioned Nevermind, Incesticide gives listeners an opportunity to see Nirvana’s origins. While Nevermind has more of a polished sound, Incesticide has noticeably minimal production and captures the stripped down, grunge-tinged sound that defines the band. Notably, the album artwork was painted by lead singer Kurt Cobain himself.

Read More »

Many may only remember them for their 1994 alterna-hit “Shrine”, but The Dambuilders were much more than just a brief flash in the pan. Their breakthrough album Encendedor holds up as one of the better examples of ‘90s indie-rock at the crossroads of heaviness and melodicism, and with electric violin to boot.

From Boston Massachusetts via Honolulu Hawaii, The Dambuilders were one of many ‘90s bands that chose to explore a vaguely Pixies-like model of volume, distortion, and catchiness. This naturally captured the interest of legions who were burning out with due quickness on all things grunge. But what additionally assisted this band in standing apart from the pack was their commitment to strong songwriting and the powerful violin playing of Joan Wasser. Her ability to provide much of their music with a tough rhythmic bedrock while also adding fleet, at times soaring melodic elements aided greatly in distinguishing tunes that were already much more than just another batch of recalculated Doolittle.

But The Dambuilders started out as a rather different and much lesser affair. Their 1989 debut A Young Persons Guide, essentially a demo by founding members Dave Derby, Tryan George, and Eric Masunaga that managed to get released by the German label Cuacha, found the band examining the milder territories of college-pop; a little bit of Athens and a wee mite of New Jersey with a few innocuous punkisms, some acoustic strum and even a little Camper-esque humor thrown in. By no means an embarrassment, it was however an inauspicious beginning. If it had somehow been the only release by the band they would frankly register as something less than a footnote.

Read More »

“All I remember from the early days about vinyl is that my dad had loads and it was an exciting occasion (or seemed like one to me at the time) whenever one made it onto the turntable in the living room.”

“The first actual record I took an interest in was Jeff Wayne’s music version of War Of The Worlds when I was in juniors at school. They had one of the tracks playing as everyone walked into assembly one day and I remember it really creeped me out, in the way that kids like being creeped out, by way of the sinister little noises and the dramatic dynamics, as well as the overall epicness of it all lodging itself firmly in my mind.

I’m not sure how it came about, I was probably humming it loads or something, but my dad caught on that I was into it. So the first memory I have of vinyl is sitting with his massive headphones on, listening to a horrifying account of how the world narrowly escaped being overrun by aliens.

Read More »